Revised Common Lectionary Reflection, Christ the King Sunday, Year B, November 25, 2018
On this last Sunday of the church year, consider what it means to leave a legacy—both as people of faith individually and as the beloved community gathered in a particular place and time. If our legacy is comprised of everything we believe, say, and do, then truly considering our legacy is a lifelong work of subversive stewardship and discipleship in grateful response to our uncommon king. (Photo: Yaffa Phillips, Creative Commons. Thanks!)

RCL Reflection, 23rd Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 25, Year B & Reformation Sunday, October 28, 2018
Will we be bold like Bartimaeus in asking Jesus for what we need? When Jesus does answer our prayer, what is our response? Will we, like the blind beggar, follow Jesus on the way, risking everything for the sake of the gospel? (Photo: Vincent Desjardins, Creative Commons)

RCL Reflection, 22nd Sunday after Pentecost, Prop. 24, Year B, Oct. 21, 2018
Do you want to be first? The only way for that to happen is to lose yourself in Jesus. Take your eyes off all that the world tells you matters, and love God with all your being and your neighbor as yourself. Yes, being a “slave of all” is indeed good stewardship because it will lead you into the way of real and abundant life—first and always. (Photo: Wonderlane, Creative Commons)

RCL Reflection, 21st Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 23, Year B, Oct. 14, 2018
This week’s gospel points to the truth that following Jesus is not for the faint of heart—just ask Peter, who is bemoaning the fact that he and the other disciples have left everything to follow Jesus. Will it still be impossible for them to enter God’s kingdom after all they have laid aside? What about modern disciples? (Photo: opensourceway, Creative Commons)

Revised Common Lectionary Reflection, Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 19, Year B, September 16, 2018
Who do YOU say that Jesus is? We know that Peter called him the Messiah and then turned right around and tried to redirect his ministry. We also know what that got Peter–a stern redirection of his own. How is your life being redirected by your faith and allegiance to the Messiah? (Photo: Robert Douglas, Creative Commons)

RCL Reflection, 16th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 18, Year B, Sept. 9, 2018. Do you have the audacious, and persistent faith of the Gentile woman in this week’s gospel lesson? Have your ears been opened and your tongue set free like the man in Sidon? Is your faith limp and lifeless, or is yours a life of wide-open discipleship? This week’s lessons invite us to wrestle with these and other questions. (Photo: Brett Streuker, Creative Commons)

RCL Reflection, 15th Sunday after Pentecost, Year B, Sept. 2, 2018
This week’s lessons provide many opportunities to talk about the gift of God’s law, the way we live as people of faith, the examples we set, and what our actions and works communicate. We must avoid becoming so focused on minutia that we fail to take in the entire picture, fail to love our neighbors, and derail a faithful witness. (Photo: John Taylor, Creative Commons)

RCL Reflection, 14th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 16, Year B, August 26, 2018
This week’s lessons remind us that the way of Jesus is not always an easy path, but it is the path that leads to abundant and everlasting life. Being part of the beloved community, the Body of Christ, equips us and strengthens us for the journey and enables us to contend with the forces of darkness and destruction. Clothed in God’s mercy, grace, and love, we are sent to proclaim a gospel of peace to all people. (Photo: annamarieangelo, Creative Commons)

Revised Common Lectionary Reflection for the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Year B, August 19, 2018
What is this “wise bread” and wine with which Wisdom sets her table and invites us to partake? How can Jesus claim that we are to eat his body and drink his blood, as John’s gospel reports? Yes, this week in the bread cycle takes radical turn that requires thinking outside of comfortable and literal boxes. Ready to eat? (Photo: Claude Monet, Creative Commons)

Revised Common Lectionary Reflection, 12th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 14, Year B, August 12, 2018
Ever had a time in your life when things didn’t go as expected? When you thought you’d done pretty well for yourself, but those around you don’t seem to agree? God has some good news for you in this week’s lessons. Get up and eat. We all need strength for the journey. (Photo: hungry dudes, Creative Commons)